Type-D Personality and Adverse Health Outcomes- An Overview

Abstract

Type D personality, a concept used in the field of medical psychology, is defined as the joint tendency towards negative affectivity (egg. Worry, irritability, gloom) and social inhibition (e.g. reticence and a lack of self-assurance). The letter D stands ‗distressed‘. Type-D can be assessed with the standardized 14-item Type-D Scale (DS14) that measures negative affectivity and social inhibition (7 items for each domain) (Denollet, 2005). Several studies have demonstrated that Type D is associated with a four-fold increased risk of mortality in coronary heart disease (CHD) patients, independent of traditional biomedical risk factors (Denollet et al.,2000; Denollet et al., 2006).The studies included in this review showed that the presence of Type D characteristics had a negative impact on mental health status (more symptoms of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, mental distress, passive coping, and less social support) and physical health status (more somatic complaints, lower health status, more influenza-like illness reporting). Other studies reported on behavioural and biological mechanisms of disease in apparently healthy individuals with a Type D personality.